Economics gets a bum rap as the dismal science or the undergraduate major of last resort. The truth is that the subject gains relevance only after you’ve had some real world work experience and are in a management role that requires smart decisions that have serious consequences. It’s a different story when your career is on the line rather than just a grade.

There’s a treasure trove of powerful concepts and tools that were likely over-simplified, glossed over for being too technical, or omitted from the standard undergraduate economics treatment. Together with insights from recent, revolutionary advances in the field, there’s a strong case for another look at economics and the competitive advantage it can offer you – as a worker, manager and leader.

HR leaders are accountable for human capital strategy and talent management through program design and execution. At the 2012 i4cp annual conference, I will be leading a workshop that introduces or re-acquaints participants with the key elements of economic science that will enrich their world-view of the people component of business and will help change the way they think about the fundamental aspects of their work: strategy, information, analytics, design, and planning.

The workshop will examine real-life issues and challenges faced by HR leaders through an economist’s lens. As a result of attending, you will be able to (among other things):

Enhance strategic thinking with key results from game theory – the science of strategy

Think outside the box by relying on the principles of constrained optimization